This may seem like a minor issue because users could just clear their history. That is not the case for DuckDuckGo and Google, which take you right back to the results you were viewing before. If you try to go to the links in your history, you will be returned to the search engine’s homepage.

If any user, or person with access to my computer, can view my search history, there is a clear conflict with the privacy claims that DDG delivers.īy comparison, some other browsers don’t display search terms in your history. However, anyone with access to your computer can view your searches in plain-text in your browsing history. As a private search engine, DuckDuckGo gives the expectation of privacy. While DuckDuckGo may not track my searches or link them to my personal information, this is a clear lack of privacy. But more privacy is a good thing, across the board, even if it doesn’t quite protect you from all angles. However, he also endorsed the use of other data protection measures to create a complete privacy suite. Snowden explains that no privacy tool or system is perfect. Snowden endorsed the use of private search tools for their lack of tracking. DuckDuckGo, along with many other private search engines, saw a massive influx of users after Edward Snowden sparked general interest in privacy, specifically from government surveillance agencies. However as this post explains, it may not offer the protection from surveillance organizations that some think. Is DuckDuckGo Really Private?ĭDG may work well for reducing advertiser tracking, avoiding filter bubbles, and limiting data profiling. Your search terms, while they may be sent over your network in an encrypted form, show up in plain text in browsing history. However, there is one issue we discovered that raises privacy concerns. It is adamant about spreading privacy around the internet.

Opinions expressed by DZone contributors are their own.ĭuckDuckGo is a private search engine.

Is duckduckgo really private